prowrestlingfandomcom-20200223-history
Nation of Domination
The Nation of Domination is a former professional wrestling stable in the World Wrestling Federation. History The original Nation of Domination was formed in 1996 in the USWA. The group was led by PG-13, (a tag team consisting of JC Ice and Wolfie D). The group also consisted of Kareem Olajuwon, Sir Mohammad, Akeem Mohammad, Elijah, Shaquille Ali, Randy X, and Queen Moisha. This group never really got off the ground in the USWA but they saw greater success in the WWF. The heel group was originally formed in the WWF when wrestler Faarooq was joined by manager Clarence Mason. The two men were also accompanied by two unnamed actors, Albert Armstrong and William Beach, who were supposed to represent other members of the Nation. The group was based loosely on the Nation of Islam. The extremism of the group's pro-black theme at times including the 'Nation Salute' and Faarooq's angry tirades on the microphone garnered them an excessive amount of heat from fans in arenas. Other wrestlers joined the Nation over time, including (in order) PG-13, Crush, Savio Vega, and D'Lo Brown. This lineup of the group remained intact until Faarooq became angry with them and fired the entire group with the exception of Brown after Faarooq's loss to The Undertaker at King of the Ring 1997, where Faarooq lost the match (in part) to the distraction caused when Vega and Crush were arguing at ringside. Faarooq promised that he would deliver a "bigger and blacker" version of the Nation, which led to the induction of Kama Mustafa and Ahmed Johnson into the group. Johnson would be forced out of the group due to injury and replaced by Rocky Maivia (later known as The Rock). Meanwhile, former Nation members Vega and Crush formed their own rival factions, Los Boricuas (made up entirely of Hispanic and Latino wrestlers) and the Disciples of Apocalypse (made up entirely of caucasian biker wrestlers) respectively. This led to a WWF style "gang war" that was heavily criticized for separating each faction by race, eventually turning the "gang war" into an angle based on racism. In the following months, the Nation feuded with Los Boricuas and the Disciples of Apocalypse with Ahmed Johnson eventually starting feuds with the Nation as well. Toward the end of the year, "The World's Strongest Man" Mark Henry, joined the group in a tag team match by assaulting partner Ken Shamrock, with whom The Rock was feuding with at the time over the Intercontinental title. In the beginning of 1998, The Rock went on to usurp leadership of the Nation from Faarooq, at which point the group dropped "of Domination" from its name and its militant focus permanently. Instead, The Rock's 'cool' gimmick spread throughout the faction with Nation members taking on considerably more hip characters, the most notable being Kama Mustafa's transformation into The Godfather. The Nation's primary focus by now saw to it that The Rock retained the Intercontinental title at any cost. The group engaged in a memorable rivalry with D-Generation X. At this time, Owen Hart, who had a past rivalry with D-Generation X leader, Triple H, would join the Nation. This was due to frustration Hart felt (kayfabe) towards the fans and his family as he felt they had abandoned him, and he 'snapped' and accepted The Nation as his real 'family' as a result. This highly popular feud saw the infamous parody DX performed in which they spoofed Nation members, The Rock thoroughly humiliating Chyna by alluding to a possible 'romantic' encounter between the two while the rest of DX were held at bay in their locker room by a forklift, a street fight between the two groups that wound up in Triple H being, in particular, singled out by the rest of the group and being beaten down with a ladder, and X-Pac & D'Lo trading back and forth the WWF European Championship. Fall of The Nation Toward the end of the year, the group showed signs of dissension as The Rock's mannerisms and swagger began to catch on with fans. The WWF could no longer ignore the cheers and adoration of the live crowds, so The Rock once again turned face. Owen Hart left the group when he believed there wasn't enough room for The Rock's ego and himself. The Rock would later be assaulted by D'Lo Brown and Mark Henry in October 1998 which would ultimately be the end of the Nation. Shortly after, The Rock decided to run solo, riding his immense rise in popularity. He would be added to Vince McMahon's Corporation stable and would subsequently enjoy several years of success. The Godfather would venture out on his own as a fan favorite, bringing with him a bevy of beauties to the ring before his match with any wrestler. Owen Hart would go on to form a successful tag team with Jeff Jarrett, and later revive his Blue Blazer character before his untimely death in May 1999. D'Lo Brown and Mark Henry would remain a tag team following the dissolution of The Nation, enjoying moderate success. After D'Lo attempted to help Mark Henry lose weight, Henry turned on D'Lo in the summer of 1999, ending the final remnants of the Nation of Domination. D'Lo would eventually hold both the Intercontinental and European titles at the height of his popularity. Mark Henry would form his "Sexual Chocolate" character and be involved in some angles of questionable quality until the development of his "Silverback" gimmick. As of 2015, Mark Henry is the only former member still active in the WWE. Legacy Similar stables and tag teams in promotions outside of the WWF have used the 'militant minority' gimmick that The Nation was well known for. The Latino World Order in WCW was an nWo parody led by Eddie Guerrero consisted of almost every Hispanic wrestler on the roster and sought to 'take over' the promotion. Latino wrestlers Homicide and Kane D. partnered together as The Nation of Immigration in Jersey All Pro Wrestling. The Latin American Exchange (LAX), also co-formed by and including Homicide, were just as, if not more, militant than The Nation because of their street thug gang mentality and use of a particularly brutal style of violence as they pushed their political agenda. Theodore Long managed a loose stable of black wrestlers (including former Nation members Mark Henry and D'Lo Brown) known as Thuggin & Buggin Enterprises on WWE Raw from 2002-2004, whom he claimed were held back from main event success by WWE management because they were African-American. Members USWA *PG-13 (JC Ice & Wolfie D) *Kareem Olajuwon *Sir Mohammad *Akeem Mohammad *Elijah *Shaquille Ali *Randy X WWF *Faarooq (November 1996 - March 30, 1998) *Clarence Mason (November 1996 - June 9, 1997) *JC Ice (November 18, 1996 - March 30, 1997) *Wolfie D (November 18, 1996 - March 30, 1997) *Crush (January 13, 1997 - June 9, 1997) *D'Lo Brown (January 13, 1997 - November 28, 1998) *Savio Vega (February 8, 1997 - June 9, 1997) *Kama Mustafa (June 16, 1997 - August 11, 1998) *Ahmed Johnson (June 22, 1997 - August 4, 1997) *The Rock (August 11, 1997 - August 31, 1998) *Mark Henry (January 12, 1998 - November 28, 1998) *Owen Hart (April 27, 1998 - August 30, 1998) Incarnations *First incarnation (heel): **Type: Stable **Active: November 1996 to June 9, 1997 **Members: Faarooq, Crush, Savio Vega, D'Lo Brown, JC Ice, Wolfie D, Clarence Mason *Second incarnation (heel): **Type: Stable **Active: June 9, 1997 to March 30, 1998 **Members: Faarooq, The Rock, Kama Mustafa, D'Lo Brown, Ahmed Johnson, Mark Henry *Third incarnation (heel): **Type: Stable **Active: March 30, 1998 to November 28, 1998 **Members: The Rock, D'Lo Brown, Owen Hart, The Godfather, Mark Henry D-Generation X parody D-Generation X, along with comedian Jason Sensation, parodied The Nation on the July 6, 1998 episode of RAW, with each member of D-X dressing as a Nation member and impersonating their characteristic mannerisms. Championships World Wrestling Federation *WWF Intercontinental Championship - The Rock (1 time) *WWF European Championship - D'Lo Brown - (2 times) External links * Profile Category:1996 debuts Category:1998 disbandments Category:World Wrestling Entertainment teams and stables